I write my name in lowercase So it doesn’t take up space I fold my dreams into the margins Where no one has to read the weight Every shout turns to a whisper Every stage becomes a corner If I don’t stand, I can’t be seen If I don’t rise, I can’t be mean So I stay lowercase Beneath the lines, out of the frame Where nobody knows my name I stay lowercase A quiet shape, a hidden flame But it’s burning me all the same I learned to shrink before I spoke So no one laughed before the joke I wear the silence like a language I let the louder voices own it Every shout turns to a whisper Every stage becomes a corner If I don’t climb, I’ll never fall If I don’t reach, I can’t lose all So I stay lowercase Beneath the lines, out of the frame Where nobody knows my name I stay lowercase A quiet shape, a hidden flame But it’s burning me all the same One day I might write it tall Let the letters touch the walls But tonight I’ll keep it small Just a name that no one calls Lowercase… lowercase It’s safer down here anyway
